Senator Jason Esteves Launches 2026 Bid for Georgia Governor

Democrat targets Trump-aligned Republicans, pledges support for small business and health care

State Sen. Jason Esteves officially entered the 2026 race for Georgia governor on Monday, casting himself as a direct counter to the Trump-aligned agenda of leading Republican contenders. In a campaign video, Esteves vowed to expand access to health care, strengthen education, and support small businesses — while confronting what he called the “chaos” caused by Donald Trump’s policies. “President Trump’s chaos has hurt Georgia’s families, and it will continue to hurt Georgia families,” Esteves said. “My job as governor is to stop that impact.”

His three-minute launch video criticizes “extreme politicians in Georgia” and features images of GOP rivals Chris Carr and Burt Jones, accusing them of rigging the system for special interests.

Esteves, 41, is an attorney and small business owner who operates several Atlanta breakfast spots. He also brings a deeply personal story to his campaign: the son of Puerto Rican parents who moved to Georgia via military transfer, Esteves was raised by working-class parents who never attended college. He later became a middle school teacher, an experience he says inspired his path into law and politics. “I saw 150 kids who were just as smart and hardworking as anyone else, but because of where they lived, they didn’t have the same opportunities,” he said.

If elected, Esteves would become Georgia’s first Black and first Latino governor.

While his candidacy was long expected, he accelerated his announcement after U.S. Rep. Lucy McBath paused her exploratory campaign due to her husband’s health.

Esteves enters a Democratic field that could soon include former Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms, former DeKalb CEO Michael Thurmond, and possibly Stacey Abrams. On the Republican side, Attorney General Chris Carr has launched his campaign, and Lt. Gov. Burt Jones is expected to follow soon — both aligning with Trump’s platform.